Tales of Arcana
by HaseoSkeith
Summary: A boy who found the answer to life's greatest question and saved his world from total destruction, once again takes up his sword to fight in a new world.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of Symphonia or Persona 3. **

**Location:** Abyss of Time

Chapter 1: A New Destiny Begins

"_Rrrrrroooooooaaaaaarrrrrrr!" _an intense wave of energy pulsated through the barren void. However, like all the other times, the giant door that stood in the creature's way still would not falter.

"_Rrrrrroooooooaaaaaarrrrrr!" _another wave of energy and still the same effect. Still the creature would not stop and prepared to do the same thing again.

"Don't you ever get tired?" a voice asked. The creature stopped and turned to the top of the giant door. The creature stared angrily at the being. The seal to the cursed door.

On top of the door sat a teenager with dark blue hair and pale blue eyes. He wore a school uniform, consisting of a white dress-shirt, black jacket, black pants and a loose black bow tie. Around his neck was an mp3 player and clip-on headphones.

"No matter how many times you try, you won't be able to break down that door," he told the creature in a bored tone. Then he pointed to himself, "So long as I'm acting as the seal, you'll never leave here."

The creature roared again and proceeded to attack the door. The boy gave a weary sigh. "Just don't know when to give up, do you." He then looked up into the void of darkness that surrounded him on all sides.

"Man, I still can't believe I had to cut my life short for this thing." He then stood back up and watched the creature continuously attack the door. "Then again, if I didn't become the seal, this thing would've destroyed all life, and it isn't like me to just not do anything about something like that."

He then grabbed the mp3 hanging around his neck and pressed the button, however all he got was a blank screen. "Man, you would think with a seal being made from my power, it would at least have someway of playing music."

He was about to go back to watching the creature continue it's futile efforts when he noticed a small light behind him. He turned around and saw a sphere of blue light. He also could hear a familiar tune coming from the light. That was when he heard a voice.

"Hello Minato, It's been awhile hasn't it." Minato's face lit up, immediately recognizing the feminine voice. "El-Elizabeth!" he shouted.

"I'm glad you still remember me, and it's good to see that you're still the same as always," she said. Minato just stood there confused. "Elizabeth, why are you here? I thought my contract with the velvet room was fulfilled," he asked her.

"While that is true, I decided to take a short leave of absence in order to help you free yourself from the great seal," she explained. "Wow, thanks Elizabeth," Minato replied. "It is no problem, you were a very interesting guest and you helped me feel things that I've never felt before" she told him.

"So have you been able to figure any way for me to get out?" he asked. The orb of light was silent for a bit, however Elizabeth continued. "Yes, I have found one way. But before I can tell you, you have to know that if you go through with this you will not return to your world." Minato stopped for a second to think '_so, another choice huh?'_ However, it didn't take long for Minato to make his decision.

"Alright Elizabeth, tell me what to do," he told the velvet room attendant. "Minato are you sure about this?" Elizabeth asked not really expecting such a quick decision. Minato nodded "Yeah, even if I'm in a different world, there's nothing saying I can't try to find my way back from there. But if I stay here, then there's nothing I can do," he explained.

"Very well then, I'll explain what will happen." Suddenly a card appeared over Minato. It fell down to his face and Minato grabbed it. "This card….!" Minato stood shocked. "Yes, this is the universe, the power you created from your many bonds."

After she said this the card began to glow. "But Elizabeth, how will this card help me escape from here?" he asked. "Since the universe is a very special card its true power was not fully brought out when it was first inspected. What I plan to do is use the full power of this card to take your place," she explained.

"How do you know that it will be enough to ensure the seal doesn't break?" Minato asked. "Well the full power of this card is limitless, much like your own ability, so the full power of the universe should keep that creature at bay. At least, that's what I theorize."

Minato then looked toward the card. "Alright then, let's get started Elizabeth," he told her. Then the card began to glow even brighter and forced Minato to cover his eyes with his arm. Them he heard the creature roar again. However, this roar sounded different. It sounded more like the creature was in pain then anger. He looked toward the creature and saw that it began to move away from the light. _'Hmm…maybe this will work after all,'_ he thought.

Soon his vision began to blur and he could feel himself getting weak. "Alright Minato I will now begin the transfer. You will be unconscious for your journey; however, when you awaken you will be in a new world," and with that Minato fell unconscious and the area was covered in the blinding light.

**Location: **Unknown

Minato's POV

I slowly began to open my eyes when the light from the sun caused me to close them again. Shortly after I realized what just happened and I opened my eyes and stared up to the sky.

This time my eyes were not playing tricks on me, it was a normal blue sky with white clouds. I then looked around and noticed that I was in a field of green grass and fields of flowers were surrounding the area. _'I really am free. Thank you, Elizabeth.' _

I decided that I should go and try to find some town or city to find a place to live. So I stood up with the intention of going but something felt strange. I don't know why but I felt shorter than I remembered.

I noticed a lake nearby and decided to take a look at my reflection. When I looked into the water I froze in shock. _'What the…!'_ I couldn't believe what I was seeing. I was no longer in the body of a teenager, but instead in the body of what I looked like 10 years ago.

'_This must be a side effect of the universe,'_ I stood back up and began my search. A short while later something caught my eye. In the middle of a field of flowers, a girl with blond hair was sleeping. _'If she's sleeping there, then there must be a town nearby,'_ I thought as I made my way toward the girl. When I got to here she woke up and took almost immediate notice of me.

We stared at each other for a while neither of us saying anything. I was about to ask her about any nearby town when she spoke first. "Um…who're you?" she asked. But before I could say anything, my vision got blurry again and the next thing I knew, I was on the ground. Before my consciousness faded again I saw the girl run up to me with a scared look on her face.

When I came to the first thing that I saw was a wooden roof. I noticed that I was lying down on a big bed. I sat up and took a look around the room. I first realized everything was wooden. I then looked out the window and saw a very old style-looking village.

I then heard a group of footsteps approaching the room. I turned to face the doorway and saw two adults enter. One was a middle-aged man with blond hair and rural clothing and the other was an old woman who wore robes.

"Well it seems that our young guest is awake. How are you feeling young man?" the woman asked me. "I'm doing better, thank you for your help," I told her. The old woman shook her head. "There's no need to thank me, if it wasn't for Colette we wouldn't have even known about you."

I nodded and that's when I noticed the girl from before, standing by her father hiding a bit behind his leg. When she noticed I was looking at her she quickly hid herself from view. The man looked back at the small girl. "Now Colette, don't be shy," he told her as Colette came back out.

The man then looked toward me. "Can you tell us your name, please?" I nodded and introduced myself, "My name is Minato Arisato." The man nodded and then turned to the old woman. "Minato, can you tell us where your from and where your parents are?" she asked me.

I looked toward the bed; even though it had been ten years since they had died I had come to peace with that. But I don't think it would look natural if a young child didn't at least look sad when talking about something like this. "I don't have a home anymore and my parents are dead," I answered.

The two turned around and began whispering to each other. While they were doing that Colette had walked up next to the bed and was staring at me with those big blue eyes of hers. She then moved her head to the side, toward the window.

I looked toward the window as well and noticed what she was looking at. A big blue butterfly was flying along the windowsill. I don't know why but for some reason I held out my hand outward toward the butterfly.

Slowly it made its way to my arm and landed on my hand. Then I slowly moved my hand toward Colette and placed it near her head. Then the butterfly moved from my hand and onto Colette's. I watched as Colette happily stared at the butterfly on her head.

I then noticed the two adults watching us and when Colette noticed, the butterfly flew out the window. After that happened Colette turned around facing the two, looking a little nervous. "Father…Grandmother…could Minato stay her, with us?" she asked. I was surprised by that, this girl wanted a random stranger she just met to stay at their house.

Her grandmother looked toward her "Well Colette, honestly I can't say that I would be okay with leaving this child on his own. However, it's Minato's decision on whether he wants to stay here," she then looked toward me awaiting my answer.

I looked down at the bed and thought about my answer. _Well then, what should I do? On one side, I'll have a home and a family. On the other hand, when I find a way home it'll be hard to leave them.'_ I then remembered some special words form a strange man. _**'I chooseth this fate of mine own free will.'**__'That's right….very well.' _

I then looked toward the family and answered the question. "I would be honoured to stay here." The two adults nodded and Colette's father turned to the door. "Well then, now that that's settled, I'll stop by the mayor to tell him about this."

He then left and Colette's grandmother walked toward us. "Colette, I want you to stay for a bit until Minato feels better. That way when he's back up you can show your brother around the village," she told the young girl.

Colette had the biggest smile on her face as she ran toward the chair that was beside the bed and sat on it. Then the old woman quietly left after telling me to get some rest. Before I did that I looked back outside the window. _'So this is what fate has dealt me this time huh. Well it doesn't matter as long as I follow the path I choose to, I'll be just fine.'_


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of Symphonia or Persona 3**

Chapter 2: Reawakening

Minato's POV

As I look out the window of the school I find it strange that it's already been 10 years since I first arrived in Iselia. Ever since then, I had been living a peaceful life with my sister and her family. However, maybe two or three years ago, I began to think that Mr. Brunel and lady Phaidra were acting a little different towards Colette.

I used to think that they were treating Colette with more respect because of her Chosen title. But it seemed that they were getting more distant from her. Colette seemed to be spending more of her time with either the priests or myself.

I also found it strange that they never let me know much about her Chosen duties. But it probably has to do with prayers or the seals and other stuff like that. From what I've been told her journey for world regeneration will be soon. They probably won't let me go with her, but I don't think that'll stop me.

"Lloyd Irving, wake up!" the stern voice of our teacher Professor Sage brought me out of my thoughts. The professor was an elven woman with white hair and light blue eyes. She wore a white shirt with an orange coat, black pants and white boots.

I turned my head to the back where she was shouting to. _'Not again. This is the fifth time this week.' _I thought as I watched Lloyd, who was sleeping at the back. Remarkably, he was sleeping while standing and while holding two buckets.

Lloyd is a boy who doesn't live in the village but actually a bit outside from Iselia. His father is a dwarf, but Lloyd is human. He wears a red shirt, with numerous buttons and two white scarf-like things coming from the neck of the shirt. He also has red gloves, the left glove being covered by bandages. He has grey overalls with brown straps, two crossing belts to hold his swords and red boots.

Then an eraser went flying through the air hitting Lloyd in the face, immediately waking him up. "Gahh!" he exclaimed. Professor Sage then walked right up to Lloyd. "How do you manage to sleep standing?" she asked, while I thought '_while holding up pales of water no less.'_

Lloyd shook off the eraser dust from his head and looked toward Professor Sage. "Oh, Professor Sage…is class over?" he asked, oblivious that he just had something thrown at him.

The professor just sighed and walked back to her desk. "Never mind, let's have someone else answer the question. Genis, how about you?" I'm actually a bit relieved, considering I wasn't paying attention and didn't know the question.

I then turned to Genis, a small elven boy, who also had white hair and light blue eyes like Professor Sage. He's actually the professor's younger brother, but they always looked like mother and child rather than brother and sister.

He was dressed with a dark blue shirt and shorts under his light blue robe-coat looking thing **(1) **with white markings. Two brown straps with yellow triangles were hanging around his chest and he wore dark blue shoes with light blue plating.

"Yes Raine," he replied while standing up. "Mithos the hero, brought about the end of the Ancient War in the Holy Ground of Kharlan," he answered then sat back in his seat.

The Professor continued the explanation from there, "Correct. Afterwards Mithos the hero formed a pact with the goddess Martel to seal away the Desians whom caused the war."

"But the Desians came back and are causing everyone to suffer!" Lloyd interrupted. Raine looked to Lloyd and sighed. "We covered that in the last class, remember. When the seal weakens the Desians reappear, just like they have now," she told him…again.

"I…I knew that. I..I just forgot.." he replied embarrassingly. The professor then began to explain about the Day of Prophecy. The day which Colette would receive an oracle from the Goddess Martel. It also meant that soon her journey would begin. I just wish I could access my power again, so that it'd be easier to convince them to let me go on the journey.

"Now, Chosen One…Colette." Again the professor's voice brought me out of my thoughts. "Yes ma'am" the voice of Colette answered. I looked toward her as she stood up. She had long blond hair and wore a gold necklace. She wore a white coat with blue outlining, dark blue pants and white shoes.

Her outfit seemed to be the opposite of mine. I wore a white shirt with a black coat and black pants. I had stitched the Gekkoukan badge on the left side of my coat and on the back was a symbol of a blue butterfly. Around my neck I still wore my out-of-power mp3 player and headphones.

"Tell us about the journey of world regeneration," Professor Sage asked. Colette quickly responded, since the priests constantly told this to her. "It is a journey to seal the Desians. Upon passing the trials of the Goddess Martel, the summon spirits that protect the world awaken, and mana is restored."

The professor nodded, "Correct. I suppose we should expect the Chosen herself to know the answer to that one." I stopped listening there; the professor was going back into the same speech about mana depletion. I have heard enough of that to last a life-time.

Still, there was one part of this journey I didn't exactly agree with. How could they let someone so young take up such a responsibility? Then again, I'm not one to talk. I just hope that the end of this journey turns out the right way and nothing terrible happens.

_***Flash***_

Suddenly a flash of light erupted and everything went white. "Wh…what was that?" I heard Lloyd say. "That's…" Colette started. I looked toward the window, "It's time," I whispered.

"Settle down. It would seem that the time for the oracle has come. I will go and check on the chapel. Everyone, stay here and study on your own. Understood?" Professor Sage said. I looked away with a single thought, _'Yeah…right.'_

"That especially means you Minato." Professor Sage said looking at me. I merely nodded. Just because the one time I tried to go learn about what Colette does at the Church and I accidently cause it to burn down. Now, the adults literally watch me like a hawk whenever something important goes on.

"Professor, I'll go with you!" Colette exclaimed as she stood up. Prof. Sage stopped at the door and turned her head toward Colette. "No, Colette. If it's the oracle, the priests will come here for you, wait here with everyone else." With that she took off, _'Fine, don't wait for your student to reply or argue. Not that Colette would argue.'_ I thought.

"Lloyd! Where are you going? Don't tell me you're sneaking out! Raine will get mad!" I heard Genis shout. I turned my head toward the door and watched Lloyd and Genis talk. "I'm really curious to find out what really happens when Colette receives the oracle. They always talk about the Chosen of Regeneration and the Day of Prophecy, but no one tells us what really happens," Lloyd explained.

I then got up and headed toward the two, "You're right Lloyd; no one actually gives any details about the whole thing, count me in." The two looked toward me, Lloyd with a huge grin, "Alright, Minato." Genis, however, had a confused look. "You mean you don't know anything about what happens on the journey?" I nodded, "I only know the basics that everyone else knows," I told him.

I then looked toward Colette, "Hey Colette do you wanna go to the chapel with us?" I asked. Colette looked toward me, "Okay brother," she replied. She walked toward us and we left the school, even Genis.

When we got outside, I noticed it was awfully quiet and I wasn't the only one to notice this. "What's going on? It's awfully quiet," Lloyd asked out loud. "This doesn't look good," I commented, earning questioning gazes from the others. "What do you mean?" Genis asked.

"It's the Day of Prophecy, I doubt people are going to be inside their homes during an event like that," I told them.

"Colette, Minato!" a voice called out. We all turned to see Mr. Brunel walking toward us.

"Father!" Colette called out. Something's definitely wrong, Mr. Brunel looks too nervous for a day like today. "Thank Goodness you're safe," he told us. "Frank, what happened to everyone in the village?" Genis asked. Mr. Brunel had a worried look on his face before he answered. "They're all hiding. The Desians invaded the village just a short while ago," he explained.

'_I knew it! I told that mayor that a non-aggression treaty with the Desians would never work, considering the Chosen is a big problem for them.' _I commented to myself. "Thankfully, no one was hurt. They passed through the village and headed for the temple," Frank finished. _'The temple…uh-oh.'_ If they were at the temple, then the priests were in big trouble.

"Why? Iselia has a non-aggression treaty with the Desians!" Genis asked, while I merely turned toward the way to the temple. Mr. Brunel must have understood what I was thinking before, "Minato, I know you didn't agree with the treaty but it was to protect the Chosen." I nodded agreeing with him even though I could have made several arguments, but right now we had bigger problems.

"Oh! Where's grandmother?" Colette asked. Mr. Brunel turned toward Colette but I already knew what he was going to tell her so I beat him to it. "Since today is the Day of Prophecy, Lady Phaidra is most likely at the chapel, preparing for the ritual."

"Phaidra's in the temple? But that's where the Desians…" Lloyd began but Frank quickly replied, "The priests are there with her. There's no need to worry."

He then returned his gaze to Colette, "Now, Colette…" but Colette was also quick to reply, "I know. I promise to fulfill my duty as the Chosen." Frank had a smile on his face as he wished her good luck.

He then looked toward the rest of us, "Minato, I want you to go with Colette to the temple. Lloyd, Genis, you two should go home." Before Lloyd could argue I told Mr. Brunel, "Actually, I think it would be better if they came. It would mean more protection for Colette."

Mr. Brunel nodded and left for the house. We headed for the back of the village so that we could leave for the chapel. But before we could leave a zombie was blocking the exit. "Whoa, it's a monster!" Lloyd exclaimed in surprise. "I thought the northern region where the temple is located was a sanctuary!" Genis said, equally surprised.

I took out a wooden sword, "There's no point in worrying about that right now, let's just get rid of this thing and head for the temple," I told them, to which they nodded and took out there weapons.

Lloyd charged in first and slashed at the creature a couple of times, he then jumped out of the way as Colette's chakram sliced the zombie's shoulder. "Fireball!" Genis shouted as he launched his spell. After the spell hit, I ran up to the zombie and prepared my strike, "Bash!" I called as I whacked the Zombie's head with the hilt of my sword. The zombie was killed and we continued to the temple.

**

* * *

Location:** Martel's Temple

When we arrived at the temple we could see a pillar of light erupting form the top of the temple. "Whoa, that light really is coming from the temple," Lloyd said. "Then an oracle is going to be conveyed. Colette's going to be the Chosen of Regeneration." Genis said as well. I just stared at the top of the stairs wondering what was going on with the Desians.

"It's really, really bright." Colette honestly commented. Lloyd and Genis both sighed at this but I just followed her observation with my own, "You're right, it is bright."

"Say Colette…when the oracle is conveyed, you'll become the Chosen who'll regenerate the world, right? So maybe you should act a bit more Chosen-like," Lloyd commented. I just shook my head, "Colette will be fine the way she is. You don't have to worry about that Lloyd," I told him.

Colette looked toward me, "Thank-you, brother." I simply nodded and was about to head up the stairs when we noticed something. We noticed that one of the priests was slowly walking down the steps. "Chosen One!" he called out. Eventually he made it to where we were but then collapsed. "Pastor!" Colette called.

We crouched down next to him as he opened his eyes and looked toward Colette. I noticed a large red splotch under his hand, he wasn't going to survive. "The Desians…broke the non-aggression treaty…and attacked the temple…Chosen One…quickly…the oracle…" the dying man told her and she quickly responded to him.

"Please…be careful. I regret that I will not…be able to pro…tect…the…Cho…sen," he spoke before he closed his eyes and passed on. The others were heartbroken at the old man's death. I was too, but we had to hurry or else the others will also be killed. "Guys…we need to go," I told them as they slowly stood up.

Colette was the first to follow me but Genis tried to stop us, "Minato, Colette! There are Desians in there!" "Yes, but I have to. I'm the Chosen," Colette told him. "And I'm not about to let them get away with hurting innocent people," I told the small child. "The two of you should wait here, okay?" Colette told them.

Then Lloyd turned to face us, "I'm going too. I can't let two of my friends go by themselves." I grinned and Colette asked if he was sure. "Dwarven Vow #1: Let's all work together for a peaceful world. Let's go," Lloyd finished as he walked toward us.

I turned to face the temple, "Then what are we waiting for," I said as I walked up the stairs, the rest following me.

When we reached the top we saw the Desians surrounding Lady Phaidra. One of them was dressed differently; he must have been the leader. It seemed that Lady Phaidra saw us as she called out, "Run, Colette!" Then all the Desians turned around and I stepped in front of Colette.

"Lord Botta, there she is," one of the grunts told the leader. He then turned to face us, "Chosen One, your life is mine!" he told her. I took out my sword and pointed toward him, "Not while I'm around"

Then Lloyd unsheathed one of his swords, "I won't let you Desians get away with anything!" he angrily shouted. Strangely though, they began to laugh, "What's so funny?" Genis demanded but then the Desians charged for us.

It didn't take long for us to deal with, but when they ran away they managed to get a large replacement. _'What the…! Where the hell was he hiding?'_ I wondered as the large man walked out. "Vidaar, eliminate them!" their leader yelled out. The man nodded and began swinging around his mace, "Do not get in our way!"

Lloyd went to attack him with a thrust attack but he merely guarded and swatted him away with his hammer. "Lloyd!" Colette yelled and ran toward him. "Colette wait…" I shouted and ran after her, and then I noticed that Vidaar was going to throw his mace at Colette. So I ran as quickly as I could and blocked the attack.

Unfortunately, the attack snapped my sword in half. I dropped the broken piece of would and checked to make sure Colette was alright. But then, I noticed that Vidaar was right in front of me and swung his hammer. _'Crap…!'_ was my last thought before I was hurled to the fence by the stairs.

"Brother!" Colette shouted, however she was oblivious to the fact that Vidaar was approaching her. My mind was running rapid, trying to figure out what to do. _'Dammit, what do I do? I'll never make it in time. There has to be something.'_ Unfortunately, Vidaar was already at Colette and prepared to swing his Hammer.

'_No, I won't let this happen,'_ and that's when it happened. Just before Vidaar could swing, a burst of mana erupted around the area catching everyone's attention. Soon mana began to swirl around me like blue fire as I could feel my power rise. Vidaar then turned around toward me and that's when I took my chance. "Stay the hell away from my sister you bastard!" I shouted as the energy got more intense.

I then pointed toward him and shouted "PERSONA!" and that's when the energy went into a frenzy as soon a figure appeared behind me. It was a large mechanical figure with white hair, a red scarf and a large harp on its back. **"Thou art I, and I am thou. From the sea of thy soul I commeth. I am Orpheus, Master of Strings."** Orpheus then unstrapped the harp from his back and charged at Vidaar. With one swing of his harp he smashed it against Vidaar and sent him into the side of the temple.

Orpheus then appeared behind me as I smiled. After ten long years I had finally awakened to my power. The power of persona.

**

* * *

A/N: (1) - If anyone knows what to call that thing he's wearing is please tell me, because that's what it looks like.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of Symphonia or Persona 3.**

Chapter 3: Receiving the Oracle

Minato's POV

The exciting rush of adrenaline I felt after all these years was incredible. To be able to use my power again was exhilarating. All my thoughts stopped when I noticed that Orpheus had started to glow. This was something I didn't expect; normally after I called forth a persona it would vanish as quickly as it came.

Orpheus was still here though and it looked like he was changing shape. He grew a lot smaller and floated down to my hand. Then in a flash of light, Orpheus disappeared and a sword reappeared in my hand. _'What the…?'_ I was confused. The only time a persona changed into a weapon was when I fused them to a weapon at the antique shop.

I stared at the sword. It was long and silver, it had the speaker that was on Orpheus' stomach under the guard, and it had his red scarf hanging from the hilt. I put these thoughts away for later pondering cause right now we still had Desians to deal with.

I ran up to Colette and reached my hand out to her. She grabbed it and I picked her up. The look of confusion was plastered all over her face. "Brother…what was…" she began but I cut her off.

"Later Colette, we still have trouble," I said as I turned back toward Vidaar, who was slowly getting back to his feet.

He walked right back up to us preparing to attack again. Even though I had my power back I was still tired from summoning it after all this time. I wasn't going to fall unconscious like the first time I ever summoned my persona but the fight was still gonna be difficult.

"Vidaar, kill the Chosen but capture the boy! I want to study what that thing he just summoned was," the leader called out. Vidaar nodded his head and prepared to strike with his hammer. I was going to try and block it but before I could someone appeared in front of us and slashed Vidaar.

As Vidaar fell I looked toward the stranger. He had auburn coloured hair and purple armor. He had a sword and shield out and what looked like a blue gem on his left hand. _'He has an exsphere, just like Lloyd! Who is he…_?' I wondered as Lloyd and Genis ran up to the rest of us.

"Who are you?" Lloyd asked.

The man barely looked back at us and said, "Get out of the way." I got a little angry at the man's words, and then noticed Vidaar getting back up.

I ran toward him and prepared my sword, "Bash!" I yelled as I rammed the hilt of my sword into the Desian's chest and sent him back.

I noticed that my bash attack was incredibly more powerful then before but Vidaar was still alive. That's when the stranger ran up to Vidaar and struck out, "Demon Fang!" he cried as he sent a shock wave at Vidaar. However, this time Vidaar fell and stopped moving. This time he wouldn't be getting back up.

"I never thought you'd show up," the Desian leader said toward the stranger. _'This Desian knows about this guy…something's up,'_ I thought to myself.

"Damn… retreat for now!" he yelled out to the rest of the Desians as they all took off.

"Amazing!" Colette commented on the stranger.

"This guy's incredibly strong!" Genis also commented.

"…Yeah…I suppose so," Lloyd commented. I just stayed quiet.

The man then turned toward us, examining us, "…Is everyone all right? Hmm…no one seems to be hurt," he said.

Lady Phaidra then walked up to the man, "How can I ever thank you for saving the Chosen?" she asked him.

The man just looked toward Colette, "…I see. So this girl is the next Chosen," he commented. I then moved in front of Colette, gripping my sword.

Lady Phaidra, noticed my hostility, "Minato, stop. This man just saved the Chosen," she told me. I kept up my stare but put my sword away, hanging it on the spot where I used to put my wooden sword.

"That's right! I have to go accept the oracle!" Colette exclaimed.

She then looked toward Lady Phaidra, "Grandmother, I'm going to undergo the trial now," she told her. She then began walking toward the temple, I followed her but we both stopped when Lloyd asked about the trial.

Strangely enough the man answered his question, "The monsters I assume. An evil presence radiates from inside this chapel."

Lady Phaidra nodded and continued to explain, "Yes, that is correct. The Chosen is to receive judgment from heaven. But the priests that were to accompany her, fell at the hands of the Desians."

I looked toward Lady Phaidra, "Don't worry, I'll protect Colette. Lloyd and Genis can even come if they think they can handle it," I told her.

"Yeah, we'll take on the job of protecting Colette." Lloyd exclaimed. Lady Phaidra then looked toward him, "Lloyd, I'm not sure, I would be a bit uneasy letting you children go."

The man then looked at Lloyd, "You're name is Lloyd?" he asked.

Lloyd just looked right back at the man and replied, "Yeah, but who are you to ask for my name?"

The man took a bit of time but then answered, "I am Kratos, a mercenary. As long as you can pay me, I'll accept the job of guarding the Chosen."

I was about to argue but Lady Phaidra agreed to his terms immediately. "I'm not about to let Colette go alone with you, I'm coming whether you want me to or not." I told him.

Then Lloyd ran up, "Wait, I'm going too!" he yelled out.

Kratos then turned his head toward him, "Lloyd, you'll only get in the way. Be a good boy and wait here."

Angrily, Lloyd yelled back at the mercenary, "What did you say?"

"Did I not make myself clear? You're a burden, go home," Kratos told him.

Then Colette spoke up, "Um…, would it be okay to take Lloyd along, too?" she asked.

Kratos was going to argue the idea but Colette stopped him. "Please. I get nervous when Lloyd's not around," she told him.

"Besides," I interrupted, "It would be better for more people that Colette's familiar with." I said while also thinking, _'I also won't have to worry about you trying anything funny, mercenary.'_

Kratos eventually conceded, "Do as you wish," and then all of us, except Lady Phaidra, headed into the temple.

* * *

We walked to the center of the floor surrounded by a bunch of stairways. We all began to examine the area, since for most of us this had been our first time here.

"So this is what the inside of the temple is like" Lloyd stated. "Colette you've been in here many times right?" Genis asked. Colette nodded, "Yeah, but it seems different than usual." I looked toward the group, "It must be because of the monsters" I mentioned while fiddling around with my new sword.

Lloyd noticed and asked, "Minato, where'd you get that sword."

The others turned toward me as well, and Colette mentioned, "Isn't that the sword from the monster from before?" she asked.

"It wasn't a monster" I quickly replied. However, now they were giving me weird looks. I didn't want to explain what a persona was so I tried to get out of explaining it.

"At least it didn't feel like a monster, and besides do you know anyone who can summon monsters." No one replied, so I continued. "It doesn't really matter anyway; it was thanks to Orpheus that we were able to survive against that desian."

Kratos gave me a hard stare, "Have you ever summoned that creature before?" he asked.

"No" I lied. I began to wander around when I noticed a gate of blue energy.

"You should be careful then, there's no telling what might happen next time" Kratos explained as he walked toward the gate. I simply nodded and waited for the others to get to where we were.

"It seems we can't go any farther without the key for this gate" Kratos told us.

I turned toward Colette, "Do you know where the key is?"

Colette thought for a couple of seconds then replied, "Oh! The sorcerer's ring, it should be on an alter, deeper into the temple." We all nodded and headed into the temple.

After going down some stairs, Genis noticed something glowing across from the large platform. We ran down the stairs to get a better look and saw a ring floating above the platform. "That must be the sorcerer's ring" Genis said.

We were about to go get the ring when suddenly Colette spoke up, "Look, there's something here." We all turned around to see what she was looking at and to my utter surprise; she was staring at a large golem monster.

"Colette, get away from there!" I shouted as I pulled out my Orpheus sword and ran toward her.

As the golem turned to face us Lloyd and I begun striking it with our swords but it didn't seem to do anything. It then brought its arms crashing into the ground sending us flying. Then Genis sent some fire balls at the creature, which distracted it, long enough for Kratos to attack it.

But before he could finish his attack, the golem held its arms out and began to spin, knocking Kratos away. '_Dammit, we can't get any good hits on this thing. Maybe Genis can distract again…' _I stopped suddenly when I noticed Colette attacking the golem.

The golem barely registered being hit and began to walk toward Colette. '_Oh no you don't' _I thought as I began drawing out my power to summon Orpheus, when suddenly a different image appeared in my head.

Then the mana around me formed a blue magic circle as I focused my attack. "Apsaras! Bufu!" I shouted as a light-blue skinned women wearing a white leotard and a belt, with a rain drop pattern, and a clear ribbon flowing around her appeared behind me and made a motion. Then a block of ice formed around the creatures face and exploded, causing the monster to stop for a bit.

I then turned my head toward Genis, "Genis use another spell!" He nodded then began to concentrate his mana for his attack.

I then looked toward Lloyd and shouted, "Lloyd get ready to finish it off!" He nodded and went to get into position. I began to focus on using Apsaras' power again. When the blue magic circle appeared underneath me, I saw that Genis had finished his spell.

"Fireball!" he shouted and as soon as I saw the attack hit I released my spell.

"Bufu!" I yelled and the block of ice formed around the golem leaving it stunned which allowed Lloyd to run right up to it and attack.

"Tiger Blade!" he shouted as he swung his sword up, jumping into the air and then swinging his sword down. Finally, the golem collapsed and turned into a stone block.

'_I guess that means we beat it.' _I thought as everyone walked up to the block.

"Wow, Minato that was awesome, how were you able to use magic like that." Genis asked.

I was about to reply when I noticed that Apsaras began to glow, just like Orpheus had. She grew smaller, and then split into two and after a bright flash Apsaras was gone and in her place was two light blue chakrams. "Hey, the thing you summoned turned into a weapon again" Lloyd stated.

"But why did they turn into chakrams? Can you even use them Minato?" Genis asked me. I shook my head; I never bothered to practice it when Colette was practicing with them.

I simply looked toward Colette, "Hey why don't you use them Colette?"

She smiled as she took the chakrams out of my hands, "Thanks brother, they're so pretty." I smiled and then looked toward Kratos who had been staring at the block the entire time.

"So what are you thinking?" I asked him. He was about to say something when Colette suddenly tripped, knocking into the block and push it into a hole which formed a pathway below us.

While Lloyd and I were helping Colette, Kratos and Genis seemed to figure something out. "I get it" Genis stated.

We looked toward him and Lloyd asked, "What are you talking about?"

Genis started looking around the room, "In just a moment, it'll probably…See, there it is." We all looked to where Genis was pointing to and saw that another Golem had just appeared.

"I get it, we just need to beat the golems and use the blocks that they turn into as a way to get to the sorcerer's ring." I explained getting a nod from Genis. '_Just great, as if fighting the golem the first time wasn't enough'_ I mentally complained and got ready to deal with the golems.

* * *

***Several fights later***

After a few more fights we finally got to where the sorcerer's ring was. "Is this the sorcerer's ring? I've heard about it before. It's a holy artifact of the Church of Martel!" Genis explained.

"With this we should be able to deal with most traps and obstacles." Kratos further explained.

Lloyd walked up and grabbed the ring with a happy expression on his face, "Wow! Let me try it!" he asked. Both Colette and I agreed, so we went back to the gate from before.

"So the sorcerer's ring should be able to open this gate, right?" I asked and Colette nodded.

Lloyd walked up to the gate and pointed the ring at it. "Okay! Leave it to me!" Lloyd said and the ring shot out a small fire ball into the center of the gate, which then opened revealing a grey platform.

Lloyd then seemed a bit dejected with the result, "Oh, is this all the sorcerer's ring does?

I just looked at him for a few seconds before I commented, "What did you expect, it's only supposed to be a key."

We then walked toward the platform and instantly we teleported to a large room that had a large alter in it. "This appears to be the top floor" Kratos stated.

I looked out a nearby window, "Yeah, you're probably right."

"Yes, that's the alter." Colette said as we began to walk to it. I noticed a jewel glowing in the center of the alter.

"So then that's the cruxis crystal, right?" I asked her.

Colette nodded, "That's right. They say I was born with that in my hand."

Suddenly a bright flash occurred, blinding the area for a couple of seconds. When the light faded I looked around the area, trying to find the cause of it. Then I looked up and almost couldn't believe what I saw. A man with blond hair, wearing green priest robes, and he had white wings flapping behind him. Just as I was about to say something Lloyd had asked "Wh…what is that?"

"An angel, I would assume." Kratos answered. I took a better look at him and thought that he looked a bit different than the angels from the Justice arcana but that didn't really matter now.

Then the angel began to speak, "I am Remiel. I am an angel of judgment. I am here to guide Colette, daughter of the mana lineage, on her journey to heaven as the next Chosen."

I really didn't like how that last part sounded, '_That almost sounds like Colette's going to die at the end but that can't be, no one would be willing to send such a kind hearted girl to her death would they?' _

Remiel continued to speak while I was thinking about what he said, "The time has come to awaken the goddess Martel, who sleeps at the center of the world." He then hand the cruxis crystal to Colette and continued, "From this moment, Colette will become the Chosen of Regeneration. We of Cruxis bless this event, and here by bestow the Tower of Salvation upon Sylvarant." We then notice the large tower appear on the horizon, reaching into the sky.

I stared at the tower with a little amount of unnoticeable anger'_Another tower, I can't really hope for a good thing coming from that tower, especially after experiencing Tartarus._'

"So that's the Tower of Salvation!" Lloyd exclaimed.

"Now the world will be saved!" Genis shouted, while I turned away from the group to hide my grim expression of wondering how this journey would turn out.

Then Remiel continued his speech, "Colette, the Chosen of Regeneration. Unlock the seals that guard the Tower of Salvation and climb its stairs to heaven in distant lands."

Colette walked up to the alter and bowed her head, "I humbly accept this task" she told him.

Remiel nodded his head, "Very good. We of Cruxis shall grant you the power of the angels with each seal you unlock. Once you are reborn as an angel, this eroded world shall be regenerated."

I feel even worse off about how this angel is wording this description of the journey, '_I really hope this regeneration is a true regeneration and not the kind I'm worrying about._'

Still bowing Colette spoke again, "Thank you. I swear on my life I will regenerate the world."

Remiel then spoke out in a loud voice, "First head south, to the Seal of Fire. Offer your prayers in that distant land."

Colette obediently agreed to go and just as Remiel was about to leave Colette turned her head up to see him. "Uh, wait! Please wait! I have a question I wish to ask you. Are you really my fa..."

But before she could finish her question Remiel had said "First head to the Seal of Fire. Understood? My beloved daughter, Colette."

Colette's face lit up in pure joy, "Father! So, you really are my true father!" she exclaimed. But my face had a more depressed look as I remembered to times in the village when I would hear rumors that Colette was the daughter of angels. I was worried for her because I didn't want her to worry about something like that.

When we were younger, once in a while she would ask me if I ever wondered about my birth parents. I always gave her the same answer, _'Sure I think of them once in a while but it doesn't really matter. So long as I follow the path I set out for myself without regret, then I'll always be fine.'_

I was brought out of my thoughts when Remiel left with another flash of light. I walk up to Colette and put my hand on her shoulder. She turned to me and I gave her a caring smile. "So, you feel better now."

She simply nodded and we looked toward the others. "You've received the oracle. Then let us leave now, Chosen." Kratos said. Colette agreed and we headed toward the teleporting platform.

I suddenly let out a large yawn, which caught the attention of the others. "Brother, are you alright?" Colette asked.

I nodded, "Yeah, I just feel a bit more exhausted than usual" I told her.

Kratos gave me a firm stare, "Perhaps it's those summoning techniques. Since you never used them before they probably drained more mana from you than your regular techniques" he explained.

I nodded in agreement and entered the transporter, with Colette and Kratos following me. When we headed for the exit Colette looked back, "Shouldn't we wait for Lloyd and Genis."

I shook my head, "Nah, let them explore for a bit. Besides Professor Sage, should be somewhere around here, considering she came here after the light from the oracle appeared."

Colette nodded and we continued out of the temple and headed home. This was somewhere I really wanted to be right now, because I'm close to falling asleep. Summoning two Personas in one day multiple times was definitely exhausting. Also, I know that when I finally do get to sleep, I'm going to be visiting an old acquaintance. I then looked to Colette, soon she would be heading out on this journey, and no matter what I'll be with her every step of the way.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of Symphonia or Persona 3.**

Chapter 4: The Journey Begins

After an hour or so of walking Colette, Minato and Kratos had arrived back in Iselia. At the entrance to the village Phaidra was standing there watching as the three walked up to her. "Chosen One…Minato, it's good to see you both back safely" she told the two.

Colette walked up to Phaidra and bowed, "Thank you grandmother," she then showed her the cruxis crystal and happily replied "Look I received the oracle."

Phaidra nodded and looked to Colette, "Indeed you have, I'm very proud of you." She then turned toward Kratos and Minato and offered her thanks. Both of them merely nodded.

"Come, we must discuss about the Journey of Regeneration," Phaidra said leading the group back to the Brunel's house.

Just as they had reached it Kratos turned his head back and soon the others followed his gaze to see Professor Sage running up to them. "Professor, what are you doing here?" Minato asked.

After catching her breath she looked toward them and explained, "I'm here about the discussions for the Journey of Regeneration, I will be accompanying Colette." With that the group went inside and saw Colette's father and the mayor sitting at a large table.

The two noticed them and both got up from their seats. "Ah, Chosen One I'm glad to see that you and your brother are okay." Frank said walking over to them.

Minato looked towards the mayor, "So, you're here to talk about the journey too mayor?" he asked.

The mayor simply huffed, "Of course I am boy…and who is this stranger," he answered, then gave an intense stare at Kratos who barely took notice of the man.

"This is Kratos, a mercenary. He offered his services to protect the Chosen after the Desians killed the priests." Phaidra explained.

"Well then everyone might as well get seated so we can start our preparations for the Chosen's journey and we can discuss your fee as well mercenary" the mayor said as everyone walked to the table.

"Actually, I have an offer to make." Kratos said which caused all heads to turn toward him. Minato gave a small glare to the mercenary. "If it would please you, I would like to accompany the Chosen as a guard. You can pay me afterward." Kratos suggested.

The mayor was quick to respond, "Why would you want to offer your services?"

"Besides the fact that as a mercenary these jobs are how I make a living, I want to see the world restored and free from the fear of the Desians" Kratos explained.

"Well…I can't see a problem with that" the mayor said. "Very well, then we will trust the task of protecting the Chosen to Kratos and Raine" as he said this Lloyd and Genis walked into the house.

"I have no objections." Kratos stated. However, Minato stood up.

"Unfortunately I do have an objection" Minato said, causing everyone to look at him.

"What is it boy?" the mayor asked.

"I'm a little surprised, you're sending the chosen on a journey and the only people you have protecting her is the professor and a mercenary that you don't even know." Minato said.

"Well without the priests, Iselia doesn't have anyone else to protect her" the mayor told him. This was partially true, besides the priests all Iselia had was a small town watch group.

"Then I guess that settles it…I'm going too" Minato told them.

"What!" the mayor exclaimed. "Boy don't be ridiculous, you'll only get in the way."

Minato just gave the man a cold stare as he explained, "I'm stronger than the town's guards and since you don't want to send anyone else, then I guess it's up to me to protect Colette."

The mayor was about to continue ranting when Phaidra interrupted him, "Very well, Minato."

The mayor turned to her in shock, "but…" he started but was again interrupted by Phaidra.

"Now mayor, you know as well as I do that once Minato has made up his mind, it's almost impossible to stop him" she told them. She then turned to Kratos and Raine, "I hope this is alright with you two?"

"If it is alright with the Chosen then I have no concerns" Kratos replied.

"Personally, I don't like it but it will be easier for Colette if she was with someone she was more familiar with" Raine explained.

The mayor finally gave in and agreed, "Fine then, Kratos, Raine and Minato will protect the Chosen."

Everyone agreed and Colette noticed that Lloyd and Genis were there as well. "Thank you so much for your help earlier" she told the two, causing the rest to turn to the two boys at the doorway.

"Oh, you're back! Thank you for your assistance earlier, please accept this small thanks" Phaidra said as the two walked around to here and accepted a reward.

"Say, were you talking about the world regeneration journey just now?" Lloyd asked and Phaidra nodded, telling him they were. "Wow! I want to go too! I wanna see Colette regenerate the world!" he exclaimed.

"If Raine is going, then I want to go too" Genis told them.

"No, you'll get in the way." Kratos said firmly.

Lloyd walked up to the table confused and asked why. Kratos stood up and faced him, "The battles at the chapel were nothing compared to the journey that awaits us. Children need to stay home."

Raine then stood up next and looked toward Genis, "He's right Genis. This journey is too dangerous for you. I want you to stay in the village and continue your studies" she explained.

"But Raine…" Genis began before she shook her head and sat back down.

"They are absolutely right. Now we still have things to discuss, you two should go on home" the mayor said. Then as the two left Colette stood up to go after them and Minato followed her.

As the two were just in front of the stairs Colette and Minato came out and Colette called out, "Please wait!" As she got close to the stairs she was about to fall when Minato grabbed her and straightened her out.

She nodded a small thanks to Minato and looked back to Lloyd and Genis. "I'm sorry" she tells them but Lloyd shook his head.

"It's not like it's your fault" he replied.

"Oh yeah…I'm sorry" Colette apologized again.

"Oh yeah, happy birthday Colette!" Genis suddenly shouted. "I baked you some cookies. If I knew you'd be leaving tomorrow, I would have made you something a little more special but…" Genis said.

"That's okay, I love your cookies! Thank you very much!" she said to him accepting the cookies.

Genis looked toward Lloyd, "So what about you Lloyd? You promised to make her a necklace, right?" he asked.

Lloyd had a nervous look on his face which let Genis and Minato know right away that he forgot. "So you forgot again Lloyd?" Minato asked.

However, Lloyd replied, "Uh, It's almost done…I'll give it to you…tomorrow before you leave. I swear!"

"Really? I'm so happy! As soon as I find out when we're leaving I'll go to your house to let you know."Colette told him.

Lloyd had a worried look on his face, "Isn't it going to be dangerous?" he asked.

Colette just continued to smile as she answered him, "I'm the Chosen remember? I'll be fine."

"Don't forget, I'll be around as well. I won't let anything bad happen to Colette." Minato added.

Colette said good-bye and walked back into the house while Minato stood outside with Lloyd and Genis. "Liar" Genis said.

"If I start on it now I'll finish it in time" Lloyd replied which caused Minato to chuckle.

"I can't believe you forgot, especially with the reminders Genis and I kept giving you." Minato told him.

As Lloyd looked down in embarrassment Genis responded, "Ah, you know Lloyd, in one ear and out the other."

Lloyd immediately glared at Genis, "Hey!"

After Genis laughed a bit he asked, "By the way, you're going home now right? Can I go part of the way with you?"

"Sure, but where are you going to go?" Lloyd asked.

"I'm going to see a friend" Genis answered, which brought confused looks to Lloyd and Minato.

"Huh? I didn't know you had friends outside the village besides me" Lloyd said.

'_That's because it's most likely not true. There aren't any villages near Iselia for miles. If that's the case then where's Genis going.'_ Minato thought but before he could ask Genis and Lloyd were already leaving.

"Lloyd! Genis!" Minato called out causing the two to look back. "Be careful out there" he said staring more at Genis than Lloyd.

"Don't worry Minato, see ya!" Lloyd yelled waving his hand, then walked away with Genis quickly following him.

'_I really hope I don't have to worry'_ Minato thought as he walked back inside his home.

When he got in he saw that the mayor was finishing up with the meeting and Kratos, Raine, and the mayor were about to leave. "Ah Minato, you're still here" the mayor said, thinking the boy left with Lloyd and Genis.

"What is it?" Minato asked.

"I just want to let you know that you'll all be leaving early tomorrow, don't sleep in" the mayor told him and then left.

"Well then, I better go and get ready for tomorrow, take care everyone" Raine said and then left.

"What about you Kratos? What will you do?" Minato asked.

Kratos turned his head to Minato and answered, "First, I will go to the shop and restock on my supplies, and then I'll set up a campsite for the night."

"Actually Kratos, since you'll be aiding the Chosen, the least we can do is let you stay the night here" Frank said walking up to the mercenary.

Kratos stared at him for a moment. "Very well, If you're alright with this then I will accept your hospitality" he answered, and then walked out of the house.

Minato then looked to Colette, "So are you going to Lloyd's to tell him when we're leaving?" he asked.

"I think I'll go by there later, after I get everything ready for when we go" she replied.

Minato nodded and the two headed for their rooms to begin packing for the long journey ahead of them.

***Several Hours Later***

After everything was finally ready, Colette was preparing to leave and go to Lloyd's, when a knocking on the door was heard. Colette opened it and standing there was Raine and Genis. "Oh, professor sage, what are you doing her?" Colette asked.

"I was wondering if you were still going to visit Lloyd?" Raine asked.

"Yes, why?" Colette replied.

"Apparently, Lloyd got into a bit of trouble because of Genis. We wanted to make sure he was okay so we decided to come with you" Raine answered.

"Oh alright, let's hurry then" Colette said as she headed out.

"Minato, you're not coming?" Genis asked.

Minato simply shook his head, "No, I'm still a bit tired from that ordeal earlier; I was planning to get some sleep now."

"Oh, okay then good-night" Genis said as he ran to catch-up to Colette and Raine. Minato waved his hand and closed the door.

He looked toward Frank and Phaidra, "Well, I'm off to bed, good-night" he said and then walked to his room. When he got there he went straight to his bed and fell asleep almost instantly. The drain of summoning his persona finally getting him to sleep.

Minato's POV

As I lay asleep I couldn't feel anything. In my mind, I was just standing there waiting. If my theory was correct then I knew that soon I would be getting a visit from that man. Silently I waited for any indication. Then I suddenly felt like I was being pulled somewhere. I soon noticed a tiled floor as I was being pulled.

Then I saw it. I was slowly approaching a very familiar blue door. As I came closer the door began to open and when I entered all I could see was white.

***The Velvet Room***

The first thing I noticed was the sound of a piano being played. The familiar tune was loud and it seemed to grow fainter as my vision corrected itself. The first Thing that I saw was a large clock hanging on a gate. I felt the entire room moving like an elevator and behind the gate glowing lights were constantly being passed.

There were several doors along the sides of the room; however most of them were covered in a blue sheet. There was a golden stand of some sort off to the side behind a blue couch. I was sitting on a blue chair and in front of me was a table covered in a blue cover.

I looked forward to the couch and I saw him, the proprietor of this room, Igor. This man, although wise, was incredibly creepy. The top of his head was bald and he had some white hair on the back of it, black wavy eyebrows, his eyes were almost completely white except for the incredibly small pupil. He had one of the longest noses I have ever seen; he had pointed ears, pale skin and a devilish smile.

From what I could see the man wore a black suit, a white dress-shirt, a black tie that had two tails of fabric, white gloves and a white cloth sticking out of his pocket. There was silence between the two of us when finally Igor decided to speak.

"Well…this is indeed a surprise" he said. "I never would have imagined that fate would deal you into a new destiny."

'_A new destiny?' _I thought, slightly confused by his words.

"This is a first. I've never witnessed the return of a guest after fulfilling our contract" as he said that a piece of paper appeared on the table. I looked at it and noticed it was the contract I had signed years ago.

"It seems that your contract will have to be reinstated" he waved his had and a blue key appeared next to the contract. "I hope you remember the rule of your contract, that no matter the outcome, you will assume responsibility for the choices that you make" he told me.

"I understand" I answered him calmly.

"Very well then" he then picked up the blue key and handed it to me. "Since you will be travelling, I will give you this special key. Use it on any door and it will open a way to the velvet room."

I accepted the key and put it into my pocket. "If you have any questions you would like to ask, please feel free to ask them" he said to me.

"What happened to Elizabeth?" I asked since she wasn't anywhere around.

"Ah Elizabeth, she is still recovering from the use of the universe, she is currently resting as we speak" he answered.

"She's still recovering, after all this time?" I asked.

"Yes, remember that this place lies between dream and reality. Time is a bit tricky in the velvet room, especially since you don't notice it" he replied. "But do not worry, you both paid a similar price when you used the universe; and although the road to recovery was different, I believe that Elizabeth should be back on her feet in no time."

I sighed in relief knowing she was okay. "One more question, what happened with the persona I could summon?" I asked.

"Ah yes your special ability" he replied. "You know that you ability was fueled by the power of your social links. Since it has been a bit more than a decade since those links have been remembered, they have lost their power" he explained. "So while the persona of those links still exist within your soul, they can not be called upon until you have started developing new social links. Of course there are two exceptions" he said.

"Two exceptions?" I asked, wondering what he meant.

"It seems that two of your social links that you created back then are still active" he said. "The first one is the death arcana, since fate had dealt you the death card it seems that link naturally has a stronger connection to you" he explained.

'_It's probably also because I had the shadow of death growing within me" _I thought as I remembered Ryoji.

"The next link is the lovers arcana" he said.

'_The lovers arcana…Yukari' _I thought.

"It seems the person of this link still holds you dear to their soul. The strength of this link indicates that even now she still remembers you and thinks about you, enough to be able to give strength to your link" he explained.

"So what will happen with those social links?" I asked.

"Well, they will retain their power, however until your soul is able to handle it you will not be able to fully utilize the full power of these arcana. As such, you will only be able to summon the weaker forms of these arcana and as your other links grow stronger, then more power from these arcana will be granted to you" he explained.

"Thank you Igor" I told the man, who kept that grin on his face.

"You are vey welcome, well now it seems that it is time for you to return. I will await until your next visit to the velvet room."

When he said that everything grew white and the next thing I knew I was awake in my bed, the sun shining down on me. I stood up and stretched my arms out. I then noticed something in my pocket; I put my hand in and took out the blue key that Igor gave me. A smile came to my face as I put the key away and gathered my travel bag. I then strapped the Orpheus sword around my waste and walked out of the room.

When I got to the table I noticed Kratos, , Lady Phaidra and Colette sitting down. Colette was the first to notice me, "Oh brother, did you sleep well?" she asked.

I nodded and replied, "Yep, feel refreshed and ready to for anything."

Kratos grunted, "I hope you can maintain that attitude on this journey" he said. I replied with a look that said 'no problem'.

The Lady Phaidra stood up, "Well then I guess the time has finally come. Are you ready?"

I merely nodded while Colette replied, "Yes grandmother."

"Well then let's head to the village entrance" Mr. Brunel said and we all got up and left for the entrance to the village. When we got there, there was a large crowd of people standing there. Near the entrance was Raine, Genis and the mayor.

"Ah Chosen One, the time has finally come" the mayor said.

Colette nodded, "Yes, I will now leave to regenerate the world, so long everyone."

She then turned to Lady Phaidra and and gave them a big hug. She then walked over to the rest of us and slowly we made our first steps on the journey.

After we were a goo distance away, I finally decided to ask, "I wonder where Lloyd was? It's not like him to miss something this important?"

Colette flinched a bit and I noticed right away, "Colette are you sure…"

I began but she cut me off, "Yes brother, this journey is going to be long and dangerous, I didn't want Lloyd to get hurt" she said to me.

I gave a small chuckle, which caused Colette to look at me. "Well, knowing Lloyd, I think that this would make him more determined to follow us, rather than keep him in Iselia" I told her.

"Even if he decided to follow us, by the time he leaves, we should already be crossing the Triet dessert" Kratos said.

"Well I guess we'll cross that bridge when we get to it" I said as we continued on our way through the fields, travelling to the first seal in this long journey.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of Symphonia or Persona 3.**

Chapter 5: Business in the Desert

It was noon when the Chosen's group reached their first destination on their long journey. As they walked up to the House of salvation they got greetings from the few people that were there.

When they reached the entrance Kratos stopped the group, "Alright we'll take a short break while the Chosen speaks with the priest" he told them.

Colette and Raine walked into the chapel; however Minato was walking in a different direction. "Where are you going?" Kratos called out.

Minato stared at him for a bit before he answered, "We're going through Triet Dessert, so I'm going to fill some canteens at the well." He then grabbed the handle of his sword, "Then I was going to do some training."

Kratos nodded then told Minato something the teen didn't expect, "If you need a sparring partner, I would be able to lend you assistance."

"Are you sure?" Minato asked.

Kratos nodded and answered, "If you're going to protect the Chosen on this Journey then your going to have to get much stronger."

Minato grumbled a bit then conceded that Kratos was right so he accepted the man's proposal and after filling the canteens, the two went to a clearing ahead of the trail leading away from the House of Salvation.

The two stood across from each other and when both were ready got into their battle stance. Kratos with his sword out to the side and Minato got into the stance he's been using since he first started wielding a sword.

"I assume by that stance that you're self-taught" Kratos commented.

Minato nodded, "Not much choice when there isn't anyone in the village who can wield a sword efficiently enough to teach" he explained to which Kratos nodded.

A few seconds later the two dashed at each other. At first their sword strikes kept bouncing of each others sword. When suddenly Kratos side-stepped and launched a sonic thrust. Minato rolled to the side to evade and quickly got back up and ran for Kratos. He attacked with a Bash attack but Kratos blocked with his shield. Kratos then pushed Minato away and launched a demon fang sending Minato further away.

Minato got back up to his feet and was about to counter when he saw a red circle surrounding Kratos, "Fireball!" the swordsman shout as several fireballs flew toward Minato.

Minato dodged the fireballs and sent a small glare at the man. '_If he's going to start using magic, then so will I_' he thought as Orpheus's sword vanished as Minato crossed his arms and a red circle appeared around him.

"Agi!" Minato shouted as Orpheus appeared over Minato's head and strummed his harp. A small amount of fire erupted next to Kratos and burned him a bit. Minato decided to keep the pressure on and prepared another Agi spell, when he felt a different presence in his mind, "Forneus! Bufu!" Minato shouted as a grey sea-monster shaped figure appeared above him and growled as a block of ice formed around Kratos and struck, however he managed to back-step away from the spell in time.

Kratos then stared at Minato for a bit. He then put his sword away, "That'll be enough for now" he said. Minato nodded and put his sword away. Then like the others Forneus began to glow. He shrunk down and split into two and then they fell into Minato's hands and when the glowing stopped he saw a pair of grey gloves with patches of leather around the knuckles.

"A pair of gloves?" Kratos asked. Minato then looked at the gloves then began to put them on.

"These will be handy in case something happens to my sword" Minato said and looked toward Kratos. "Thanks for sparring with me Kratos" Minato said and gave a small bow.

Kratos grunted and replied, "There's no need to bow. If you ever need to spar again, I'll be happy to assist you." The mercenary then headed back to the House of Salvation. Minato was about to head back when he felt a familiar sensation at the back of his mind and heard a familiar voice, '_**Thou shalt have our blessing when thou choosest to create a persona of the emperor arcana.**_'

Minato nodded his head and ran to catch up with the auburn-haired swordsman. When the two got back they saw Colette standing outside next to a dog. "Colette where's Professor Sage?" Minato asked.

Colette spun around to look at the two and answered, "She's inside talking to the priest."

"I'll go see how long she's going to be, you two stay here" Kratos told the two and then walked into the chapel.

Minato walked up to Colette and saw that she went back to playing with the dog. "So who's your new friend?" he asked.

Colette looked up at him with a smile as she answered, "Oh him, this is Bob."

"Bob?" Minato asked.

"Yeah, doesn't he look like a Bob, I think it's a great name for him" Colette told her brother.

Minato held his chin and stared at the dog questionably. "You're right, I think Bob's a great name" he complemented.

Colette nodded and then looked at Minato, "Brother…" she began, which caught Minato's attention causing him to look towards her. Colette seemed to hesitate on what she wanted to say for a bit. She eventually calmed down, "Thank you" she told him.

Minato stared at her confused by the sudden thanks, "You're welcome, Colette, but…why are you thanking me?" he asked.

"Well, don't tell anyone but I already miss everyone. I know that it's my duty as the chosen but…" She explained but Minato stopped her.

"Don't worry about it, everyone gets homesick. Plus you should have known I would've found someway to come. I'm your brother, and nothing will stop me from protecting you. If you're ever in trouble and need help, know that I will do anything to help" Minato told her.

Colette had been looking at the ground so he couldn't see her expression, but was surprised when she suddenly rushed to him and hugged him. "Thank you, brother" she said in a quiet voice.

Minato smiled and hugged her back, "You're welcome, Colette" he whispered back. He then felt a sensation and heard a voice '_**Thou shalt have our blessing when thou choosest to create a persona of the priestess arcana.**_' When the sensation left the hug ended.

"Let's head back Colette. Professor Sage should be done talking to the priests" Minato told her. She nodded and the two walked to the entrance of the House of Salvation, where they saw Kratos and Professor Sage leaving the chapel.

Kratos looked toward the two "Are you ready to continue the journey, Chosen One?" he asked. Colette nodded and the group began to head out to their next destination, the Dessert City, Triet.

* * *

***Triet Dessert***

It had felt like the group had been travelling for hours, or maybe they were delusional from the heat but Kratos had called out saying that he could see Triet and that they would be there soon.

As they came closer they were hit by a sandstorm. They huddled together and waited until it subsided. When it did they were surprised to see that they were surrounded by a group of scorpions.

They took out their weapons and Kratos yelled, "Professor Sage, stay in the center with the Chosen. Minato, you take the left side and I'll handle the right!"

Both Minato and Raine nodded and Minato ran toward the group of scorpions. The scorpions were being killed rather easily, however more started to arrive and they were starting to tire from the heat.

Minato was about to get rushed by a bunch of scorpions when he heard the professor cry out a spell and a field of light exploded around the scorpions. Minato then ran up to another scorpion and used his free hand to land a punch to stun it then followed up with a slash from his sword.

Suddenly a scorpion appeared from under his left side and pierced Minato's right arm. Minato let out a cry of pain and jumped back. Colette ran up to him, "Brother, are you alright!" she shouted when she was next to him.

Minato was about to tell her to get Professor Sage when he felt a presence in his head. He looked to Colette, "Colette, keep those scorpions back for a bit." She still looked worried but she then ran and began throwing her chakrams at the scorpions. Minato began to focus as he called upon his persona, "Pixie! Dia!" Then a small fairy dressed in blue with red hair appeared and flew toward the injury on his arm. She raised her hands toward the wound and a light surrounded the wound and soon after the wound was gone.

Acting quickly Minato quickly ran toward the remaining scorpions and began swinging wildly killing off the rest of the scorpions on his side. Minato put his sword away and turned to Colette who had walked up to them, the professor and Kratos following behind her.

"Brother how's your arm?" Colette asked concerned.

Minato smiled waving his arm up and down, "I'm fine Colette." He then noticed Pixie had begun to glow like the others. When he took hold of it the light faded revealing a small blue bow.

"A bow?" Professor Sage asked. Minato began to adjust to the bow when she continued, "If you plan on using it Minato then were going to have to see if we can find some arrows in the market at Triet.

Minato shook his head in agreement and turned back to the bow. He pulled on the string to test it when suddenly a glowing blue arrow appeared, ready to be fired. This shocked everyone and Minato accidently let the arrow go, shooting it into the sand.

"Amazing!" Professor Sage began, "It seems that the bow can form arrows from your own mana."

Minato gave a small chuckle, "Well I guess I don't have to worry about arrows now."

"Minato, can you make another arrow?" Professor Sage asked. Minato nodded and formed another arrow. The professor stared for a bit as she finally began to speak. "Yes, you should be safe with forming the arrows with mana. You see from what I could gather, the arrow only seems to take a very small amount to form" she explained.

The group decided to continue heading toward Triet. By the time they arrived it was already night so the group headed straight for the inn. They got two rooms, Colette and Raine in one room and Kratos and Minato in another.

The next day the group began figuring out where to start in looking for the first seal. "I suggest that we split up for now and look for information about the location of the seal" Kratos said,

Raine nodded, "I agree, Kratos you search with Colette, I'll search with Minato." Minato was about to protest, but Kratos nodded and the two began to walk off.

"Come along, Minato" Raine said. Minato followed albeit with a barely noticeable scowl on his face. After a bit of walking, the two had arrived at the end of a dock on the oasis. "Minato, can I ask you something?" Professor Sage suddenly asked. Minato looked slightly confused but nodded, signaling her to proceed.

"It's about your summoning ability. To be honest I've never seen anything like it, it's amazing." She turned her head toward Minato, and he swore he could see a strange glint in her eyes. "I've never seen or heard about any of the creature you could summon, the only things I've ever heard about were the summon spirits."

Minato was slowly starting to become nervous, "uh…Professor…"

"Minato!" Raine suddenly shouted.

"Yes, Professor Sage?" Minato answered questioningly.

"I want you to tell me everything you know about this summoning ability of yours!" Raine demanded.

Minato cursed in his head, he couldn't tell her about his persona ability, it would most likely seem impossible for her to believe and would possibly cause other issues. So he quickly thought of something to tell her, "I only remember something I was told a long time ago, before I came to Iseilia. It apparently was a very special way of summoning creatures; that very little people were able to do. That's all I remember."

Professor Sage seemed to ponder on what he said when she opened her eyes, "Very well, I guess that's good enough for now." She then took out a brown notebook and held it out to Minato.

Minato stared at it for a bit when he finally decided to ask, "What's the notebook for Professor?"

"I want you to keep a record of the creatures you summon" she told him as Minato took the book. "I want to see all the possibilities of creatures that you summon, alright?" Minato nodded as he looked at the book. He then felt a familiar presence has a voice entered, '_**Thou shalt have our blessing when thou choosest to create a persona of the empress arcana.**_'

As the presence faded the two heard footsteps approaching. They turned and saw Kratos and…a sand-covered Colette with a bruise on her forehead. "Colette, wh-what happened?" Minato asked walking up to her.

Colette scratched the back of her head nervously, then Kratos answered, "There was a little incident in the market area."

Minato sighed and took out his Pixie bow and focused, "Dia" he said and a light surrounded Colette's bruise healing it.

Colette felt her head and gave thanks to Minato. "Did you two find anything on the seal?" Raine asked.

"We didn't find information on the seal itself but we know of someone who could help. She's a fortune teller. Her tent is located near the lake." Kratos explained

So the group went to the fortune teller. When they entered the tent they saw a woman staring into a crystal ball. They asked her if she could help with the location of the seal and the fortune teller looked into her crystal ball. She told them that the seal lied in the west. Raine then remembered that there was an oasis that had been destroyed when Efreet went out of control.

With a destination in mind the group headed west in search of this oasis. The group was walking for a while and the professor began to lecture about the oasis that they were searching for.

Suddenly, Kratos stopped them. "We have trouble" he said as the others came up to him and looked where he was. They were surprised to see a small group of Desians roaming the area.

"Could they be looking for us?" Minato asked.

"Maybe, we should probably head back to Triet and head for the oasis tomorrow. Hopefully they'll have stopped searching in this area." Kratos told the group.

So they turned around and headed for Triet. However when they got there they noticed two familiar figures standing near the entrance of the village. "Genis? Noishe?" Colette asked.

The two figures turned and indeed it was Genis and Noishe. The two walked up to the others. "Genis, why are you here and why is Noishe with you?" Minato asked.

Genis was quick to answer, "Well, it's a long story" and Genis had told them everything that happened. About the two going to the ranch, about Lloyd protecting Marble from some Desians, about what the Desians did to Iseilia and to Marble and about them being banished from Iseilia.

"Genis, how could you cause so much trouble? For both you and Lloyd?" Raine asked disappointment evident in her voice.

"Sorry Raine" Genis apologized. Minato the noticed something.

"Genis, where is Lloyd?" he asked the small boy.

The boy's eyes widened as he suddenly told them, "Oh no, I almost forgot. The Desians put out a wanted poster for Lloyd, and then we got captured by the Desians. I managed to get away but Lloyd is still in danger" Genis finished and everyone was in shock.

"Genis, do you remember where they took him?" Minato asked and Genis nodded.

Kratos then walked to the front of the group, "Very well then, lead the way and when we get there will figure out a way to get that trouble maker free" he said to which everyone agreed. So Genis lead the group through the desert. Then after a bit of walking they saw it a large bluish-green structure that greatly contrasted with the desert sand around it.

* * *

There was no one guarding the area so the group carefully ran to the entrance of the complex. The door to it was locked. Next to the door was what looked like a keypad, with several different symbols on it.

"Professor, do you think you can open it?" Colette asked.

Raine looked over the keypad for a bit. Then answered, "It might take some time but I should be able to open it."

So as Raine was working on opening the door, Minato and Kratos kept watch for any Desians, while Colette and Genis stood next to Raine, Noishe had apparently disappeared a while ago.

After a while the door finally opened. "Alright!", "You did it!" both Colette and Genis cheered. So everyone ran into the building. They marveled at the metallic look of the building but quickly continued forward. They reached a large room with a strange device in the middle of the room. As they walked toward one of the doors another door on the other side of the room opened and three Desians ran into the room along with a familiar figure.

"You!" Minato shouted at Botta, the Desian they had encountered at the temple. The Desians were surprised at first but Botta quickly calmed down.

"Ah, if it isn't the Chosen's group, I didn't expect you to show up all of a sudden" he said.

"Where's Lloyd!" Colette yelled out, the man merely signaled the Desians in front of him and they got ready to fight.

"Unfortunately Chosen I see no need to answer that. Desians take care of them" Botta commanded as he ran to the other door and went through it. Then the alarm went on and the Desians moved to block the door.

"Get out of our way" Minato told them as they took out their weapons and began fighting. The Desians were easily taken care of and they ran for the door. As it opened they continued forward down the hall where it split up. There was a door nearby so the group ran for it.

When they got into the room they saw that Lloyd was surrounded by Botta and a couple of Desians. "Lloyd! Are you okay?" Genis shouted.

"Are you all right? Are you hurt?" Colette asked.

"He looks fine" Kratos said.

"Yeah, he can somewhat take care of himself" Minato said.

"You guys all came for me?" Lloyd asked.

Botta turned and sneered at the group that came in, "Perfect timing. I'll take care of everyone at once!" The two Desians took out there weapons, prepared to attack. The Botta took out a large, red, curved sword.

As the battle began Lloyd immediately went to attack Botta, who turned and block the boy's swords. The other two Desians were about to attack Lloyd but they were intercepted by Minato and Kratos. "Bash!" Minato shouted punching the Desian in front of him in the face.

"Sonic Thrust!" Kratos shouted as he struck the other Desian. The two Desians were thrown backwards. They were then about to continue when they were struck by fireballs, taking both out. Minato and Kratos turned to Botta and saw that he and Lloyd were still facing off. Lloyd was quickly attacking with his swords and closely evading Botta's slow swings.

Minato and Kratos ran up to Botta and began to strike Botta. Quickly getting overwhelmed, the man took a leap back and focused his magic waiting for the right moment. The three swordsmen ran toward each other and thought of how to attack next when Botta suddenly shouted, "Stalagmite!" Then a stalagmite struck from under the three launching them back.

Minato was first to get up and glared at Botta. He then called Colette over, "Colette stay behind me for a second." Colette nodded and did what he said. Minato then looked toward Botta and began focusing his power, as he did his sword and Colette's chakrams disappeared. "Cadenza!" he shouted, and then Orpheus and Apsaras appeared above him and held their arms up. The group was then covered by light and their wounds were healed.

Lloyd and Kratos quickly got up and ran for Botta. As they attacked they noticed that their strikes were faster. Minato still stared at Botta and began focusing his power, "Tarunda!" he shouted as Orpheus played his harp and a blue aura surrounded Botta.

Botta who was in a clash with Lloyd suddenly felt himself losing to the dual swordsman. Then a shout of Rakunda was heard as another blue aura surrounded him and he felt weaker.

Lloyd easily forced Botta to stagger and struck him in rapid succession. He then yelled out his attack, "Sword Rain!" stabbing Botta rapidly. Botta was sent backwards and then crouched. When he tried to get back up Kratos struck forcing Botta to stop.

"Ugh…I underestimated your abilities" Botta said. He then dropped his sword onto the ground and ran to a door in the back and left the room.

As the group watched the door Raine walked into the room and picked up the discarded weapon. "Isn't this a…" she began as the others turned toward her.

"Professor!" Lloyd shouted happily.

"Ah, Lloyd. Genis told me what happened" Raine said as she turned to face him She then looked back to Genis and continued speaking, "I apologize for the trouble he's caused you."

"No I'm the one who dragged Genis into this. I'm sorry" Lloyd apologized.

"Save the chitchat for later. We should stay her for long" Kratos interjected and the other agreed.

"You're right. I opened the escape route while you were fighting. Let's go." Raine said and everyone began to run.

When they got out of the building, Noishe was standing there. "Noishe! You came too?" Lloyd asked surprised since the dog never came near placed where enemies were.

"I have a question" Raine suddenly asked. "This crystalline object attached to this weapon…Is this one of the exspheres that Genis spoke of?"

Everyone turned to look at the weapon she had and the crystalline object she spoke of. "It would seem so" Kratos answered.

"Oh yeah, you use an exsphere too" Lloyd stated.

"…So you noticed" Kratos responded.

"Well you don't really hide it very well" Minato told him.

"What are they exactly?" Raine asked.

"It will take a while to explain. We can talk about it when we reach Triet" Kratos told her and the group began to move back to Triet.

* * *

When the group got back to Triet it was clear that many of them were tired. So they went to the inn and got rooms for the night. When night came around the group headed for one of the rooms upstairs and began to give explanations about exspheres.

"… In other words, these exspheres are amplifiers that awaken our dormant capabilities" Raine summarized, she then got a strange look on her face as she held the exsphere. "I wonder if I could use one too!" she exclaimed.

"That would be difficult" Kratos interrupted. "Exspheres are harmful to the body without a key crest" he explained.

Um… can't we make a key crest?" Colette asked.

"As I told you before, a key crest is made by processing inhibitor ore, then engraving it with a crest to control the exsphere attached to its surface. It is said to be a secret art known only to the dwarves" Kratos explained.

"So the only we could make one is if we asked Dirk" Minato stated.

"Yeah. I can engrave the charm…er, crest, but only my dad can process the ore" Lloyd told them.

"Well is there any inhibitor ore among these materials?" Raine asked taking out some items.

Everyone look at the many items she took out. "Raine! Did you bring these from our house?" Genis asked surprised.

"Of course they're valuable research materials" she explained. "This is a holy vase from the Balacruf Mausoleum. This is a jeweled sword from the Martel Temple. This is a priests crown from the Asgard ruins. This is yellow ore from the Hima mines…" Raine explained.

"What the?... It's all junk!" Lloyd said and in the back Minato covered his face with one hand and shook his head at the idiotic thing the boy just said.

Raine immediately got up and got right in Lloyd's face. "What did you just say?" Everyone watched as Lloyd was getting a verbal beating from the professor, when Kratos suddenly noticed something.

He walked over to the materials and picked something up. "Hmm? This is…" Kratos began and the group turned to look at him.

"Ah, I picked that up in front of the human ranch. It was engraved with angelic language so I took it home" Raine explained.

Lloyd walked up to Kratos and looked at the item, "Professor! This is a key crest!" he told her.

"The crest is half worn off, it's unusable like this" he told them, handing the key crest to Lloyd.

"I can fix that" Lloyd told them. "Don't worry Professor, you'll be able to equip that exsphere by tomorrow."

"Really? Thank you Lloyd! I'm sorry to make you go through the trouble, but I appreciate it" she thanked her student.

The group got up and Kratos, Colette, Minato and Lloyd left the room. Minato and Colette went to the next room, while Lloyd and Kratos went to the bottom room.

After a lot of work Lloyd finally finished fixing the key crest. "Okay it's done. I'll go give it to the professor" Lloyd told Kratos. Kratos made a comment about him not taking to long and Lloyd left.

He headed straight for the Sage's room and went inside. Genis had been asleep but Raine was reading a book. Lloyd walked over to Raine, "Professor, you're still awake" he said.

"Yes I've bee organizing the data we've collected about monsters" she told him. She then looked to him and asked, "And what are you doing up at this hour?"

"I was fixing your key crest" he answered.

"Thank you, but you mustn't overexert yourself. It's going to be a long journey, after all. I don't mind if it takes a while to fix" she told him.

"So, are you saying that it's okay for Genis and me to come along on this journey?" Lloyd asked.

"Wasn't that your intent from the beginning? Stop pretending" she said to the boy, who gave a nervous laugh.

"Oh yeah. I fixed the key crest, so here, take it" Lloyd said handing her the key crest.

"You fixed it already?" she asked surprised. "Thank you Lloyd" she thanked him. "So this is an exsphere" she began studying the exsphere.

"Ask Genis to show you how to use it" Lloyd told her. He then began to leave the room when he turned his head back to her, "Well, I'm gonna go now. Good night, Professor."

"Thank you, Lloyd. Sleep well" she told the boy as he left. She then looked backed to exsphere and began to examine it, "Heheheheheh! So this is an exsphere! MARVELOUS!"

As Lloyd walked out of the room he looked at the other door, Colette and Minato's room. He walked to the door and decided to go in. When he walked in he saw that the two were sleeping. Colette was on the bed while Minato had taken the floor.

Lloyd walked up to the bed and asked, "Are you asleep?" It seemed to be the case so he decided to leave until he heard Colette call him.

He turned as she began to speak, "I'm sorry that Father, Grandmother, Brother and I couldn't prevent your exile."

"You dork. It's not your fault, so you don't need to worry about it. And besides I'm the reason why the village was devastated" Lloyd told her as she began to get out of bed.

"You're the dork" a voice suddenly said and the two turned to the boy lying asleep. "There were many factors as to why the village got attacked. You're not the only person who's accountable" Minato said while getting up

"Brother…" Colette began but Minato put his hand up, stopping her.

"I'm not going to say that you're not at fault, because that's not exactly true. You could have easily stopped Genis when you knew he was heading for the ranch but you didn't. You also could have taken Marble's advice to leave and be prevented from being seen, again you didn't" Minato told the swordsman, who looked at the floor depressed.

"However" Minato continued which caused Lloyd to look at him. "You stayed by your friend in a dangerous situation and you protected Marble. If I was in your position I would've done the same thing. So don't put yourself down because of this" he told Lloyd.

"Thanks Minato" Lloyd said with a smile

"For Marble's sake, and for the sake of the villagers that were killed, I'm going to do my best to regenerate the world" Colette said.

"Yeah, and now you'll have your friends beside you every step of the way" Minato told her.

"Along with a very overprotective brother" Lloyd commented, which caused Minato to glare at him and Colette to giggle.

"Anyway…I'm sorry that I woke you" Lloyd apologized.

"No, it's okay. Good night" Colette said.

Lloyd nodded and began to walk out when Minato felt a presence in his mind and heard a voice. '_**Thou shalt have our blessing when thou choosest to create a persona of the magician arcana.**_' After it faded Colette said good night to Minato, who nodded and the two went to bed.

When Lloyd left the room he noticed Kratos leaving the inn. "Where's he going at this hour?" Lloyd asked himself as he chased after the older swordsman. When he got outside he saw Kratos looking at Noishe. As he walked up to Kratos, the man suddenly took out his sword and held the blade against Lloyd's neck. "Whoa!" Lloyd suddenly screamed out.

"Lloyd…" Kratos muttered as he moved the blade away and put it back in his sheath. "I'm sorry to have startled you" he told the boy.

"Startled isn't the word for it" Lloyd nervous replied.

"You'd best not stand behind me" Kratos advised.

"I won't" Lloyd replied. The two then went to watch Noishe who had been standing there the entire time watching. "Do you like animals?" Lloyd asked.

"No, not particularly" Kratos answered.

"Well Noishe seems to be quite comfortable with you. He usually doesn't like strangers" Lloyd said to him.

"I once had a pet, long ago" Kratos commented.

"Really?" Lloyd asked surprised.

"Lloyd…" Kratos began, which caused Lloyd to become quite nervous.

"Wh…what? What are you staring at me like that for?" Lloyd asked.

"Your swordsmanship is unrefined. You should focus a little more on eliminating your vulnerabilities" he criticized. As he began to walk away he stopped and said, "If you care about your life." He then continued back into the inn.

Angrily Lloyd stared at the retreating man's form, "Grrrr! Just because he's a little better than me, he has to talk like he knows everything!" He calmed down a bit before continuing, "Well… a lot better than me. Damn!" He began walking back to the inn to get some sleep. Knowing that tomorrow he would finally be able to help with regenerating the world.

* * *

**A/N: Hey guys, sorry this chapter took longer than it should have and thank you for the reviews that you've given. I would like to ask for the readers' opinion on an issue I was have. In terms of coming up with the characters for the social links I've been having trouble finding one for the following arcana;**

**Temperance**

**Tower **

**Star**

**If you guys could give me some ideas of character besides the main heroes, it would be greatly appreciated.**


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